[JURIST] Political activists and politicians in Iran have been arrested following protests of the country's controversial presidential election [BBC backgrounder], human rights groups said Wednesday. According to the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran (ICHRI) [advocacy website], former foreign minister and current leader of the Freedom Movement of Iran [official website] Ebrahim Yazdi was arrested [press release] Wednesday in a Tehran hospital. ICHRI also reported the arrests of economist Saeed Laylaz, youth activist Mohammadreza Jalaieepour, Freedom Movement political director Mohammad Tavasoli, and other officials and activists. Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] reported that 17 political activists were arrested [press release] and taken to "unspecified locations" after staging a peaceful protest in a public square in the city of Tabriz. A spokesman for ICHRI addressed the increased repression, saying:

Iranian intelligence and security forces are using the public protests to engage in what appears to be a major purge of reform-oriented individuals whose situations in detention could be life-threatening. The authorities are responsible for the health and safety of these people and should be held accountable.